November 13, 2013
Palmer Community Center (Depot), 610 S. Valley Way, Palmer
8:30 Registration
9:00 Symposium Welcome
Jessica Winnestaffer (Mat-Su Salmon Partnership Steering Committee Member, Chickaloon Village Traditional Council)
Patricia Wade (Tribal Citizen, Chickaloon Village)
Schawna Thoma (State Director, Office of U.S. Senator Mark Begich)
9:35 Keynote Address: Ecosystem Services, Healthy Communities, Healthy Economies – David Batker
(Earth Economics)
Introduction by David Wigglesworth (US Fish & Wildlife Service)
10:35 Networking Break
11:00 Mat-Su Salmon & Habitat; their Value and Management
The Natural Economy of Alaska’s Matanuska-Susitna Borough - Maya Kocian (Earth Economics)
A Contingent Valuation of Ecosystem Services in the Mat-Su: Local Willingness to Pay For Conservation and Access to Recreation - Toby Schwoerer (Institute for Social & Economic Research)
A Watershed Perspective on Salmon Production in the Mat-Su Basin – Catherine Cassidy, (United Cook Inlet Drift Association)
Where Have All the Salmon Gone?- Larry Engel, (Mat-Su Borough Fish & Wildlife Commission)
12:00 LUNCH
1:00 Interactive Session with David Batker
An interactive session with David Batker to discuss how salmon and their habitat are important to the Mat-Su economy.
2:00 Tidbits
Please sign up at the registration desk to present a 3 minute project summary or announcement. If you have a slide or two to project (maximum 2 slides), please load them by the end of lunch.
2:15 Poster Session
Poster authors will be on hand to answer questions about their project.
Instream Flow Protection in the MatSu Basin – Thomas, Capiello (Alaska Department of Fish & Game)
Neptun: Testing of an Electric Fish Barrier as a Useful Tool for Trapping Northern Pike – Amy Shaw, & Matt Smukall (Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association)
Understanding Conflict in the Context of Sustainability in Cook Inlet Salmon Fisheries – Hannah Harrison (Alaska Salmon Alliance)
Enhancing Salmon Through Beaver Dam Surveying – Lisa Ka’aihue (Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association)
Salmon Carcasses and Stream Productivity – Hannah Ramage (Aquatic Restoration & Research institute)
Shell Lake Salmon Rehabilitation Project – Nathan Weber (Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association)
Leaf Decomposition as a Potential Indicator of Stream Ecosystem Health and Salmon Condition - Jeff Davis (Aquatic Restoration & Research Institute)
Effects of Habitat Variation on Salmon Populations in the Mat-Su Valley - Kristen Humphrey (Aquatic Restoration & Research Institute)
Contribution of Ecosystem Services to Residential Property Values in Alaska’s Matanuska-Susitna Borough - Matthew Berman and Jeffrey Armagost (Institute for Social & Economic Research)
Chinook salmon enhancement efforts in Moose Creek – Jessica Winnestaffer (Chickaloon Village Traditional Council)
2:45 Susitna River Salmon Studies
Ecological Risk Assessment of Large-Scale Hydropower on Pacific Salmon Populations within the Susitna River - Joe Miller (Anchorage QEA)
An overview of the Fish and Aquatics Study Program for the Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project - Marylouise Keefe (R2 Resource Consultants)
Chinook Salmon above Devils Canyon on the Susitna River, a Sink or Self-Sustaining Population -Bryan Nass ( LGL Alaska Research Associates Inc.) and Chris Habicht (Alaska Department of Fish & Game)
Winter Study of Juvenile Anadromous and Resident Fishes in the Susitna River - David Roon (R2 Resource Consultants)
Juvenile Salmon Winter Habitat Associations in the Susitna and Talkeetna Rivers- Hannah Ramage (Aquatic Restoration & Research Institute)
4:00 Announcements & Adjourn
4:15- Social Hour
6:00 Palmer Community Center (Depot), 610 S. Valley Way, Palmer
Come visit with your colleagues and meet David Batker. The Mat-Su Salmon Partnership is providing appetizers, and a cash bar will be available.
November 14, 2013
Palmer Community Center (Depot), 610 S. Valley Way, Palmer
8:30 Registration
9:00 Salmon Habitat Conservation & Restoration
Prioritizing Riparian Habitat Protection and Restoration: What Strategic Habitat Conservation Looks Like on the Ground - Meg Perdue (US Fish & Wildlife Service)
King Makers- Leaving a Legacy of Wild Salmon for Future Generations- Kim Sollien (Great Land Trust)
Overview of Assessments& Impacts to Riparian Habitats in the Mat-Su Basin - Elizabeth Benolkin (US Fish & Wildlife Service)
Wasilla Soil & Water Conservation District Summer 2013 Field Operations on Big Lake, Cottonwood Creek, & the Little Su River: Assessment, Recording, Evaluation, Reporting, Plan for Action! - Chuck Kaucic & Joseph Phillips (Wasilla Soil & Water Conservation District)
Septic Smart – Cottonwood Creek – Catherine Inman (Mat-Su Conservation Services)
10:15 Networking Break
10:45 Potential Threats to Salmon; Climate Change & Invasive Pike
Impacts of Variable Glacier Coverage on Downstream Fluvial Discharge: a Case Study From the Eklutna Basin - Mike Loso (Alaska Pacific University)
Landscape Controls on Stream Temperature and Thermal Sensitivity: Assessing Climate Change Impacts in Mat Su Salmon Streams- Sue Mauger (Cook Inlet Keeper)
Invasive Northern Pike Suppression on Alexander Creek (A Salmon Restoration Project)- David Rutz (Alaska Department of Fish & Game)
11:30 Mat-Su Salmon Partnership
Where the Partnership Has Been – a Look at Partnership Successes and Challenges in the Last Five Years - Bill Rice (Fish and Wildlife Service)
Where the Partnership is Headed; the Partnership Strategic Action Plan Revision - Corinne Smith (The Nature Conservancy)
12:15 LUNCH
1:15 Open Space Discussion Groups
Discussion topics stem from proposals received before the Symposium, and include some subjects intended to assist in the final stages of updating of the Salmon Partnership Strategic Action Plan. Additional ideas can be suggested on the signup sheet at the registration desk during the symposium. You will have 20 minutes with the first discussion group, then another 20 minutes with your second choice group. Topic numbers will be placed on tables.
1. Impacts of Beaver Dams in Combination with Invasive Northern Pike
2. Data Gaps and Research Needs for Mat-Su Salmon and Salmon Habitat
3. Possible Re-formation of a Cooperative Weed Management Area in the Mat-Su
4. Identifying and Evaluating Funding Mechanisms for Ecosystem Services
5. Methods to Enable Smaller Partner Organizations to Actively Participate in the Implementation of the Partnership Strategic Action Plan
6. Salmon Habitat Information Tools and Resource Planning
7. Balancing our Salmon Resource with Large-scale Resource Development
2:15 Networking Break
2:30 Tidbits
Please sign up at the registration desk to present a 3 minute project summary or announcement. If you have a slide or two to project (maximum 2 slides), please load them by the end of lunch.
2:45 Mapping Streams & Fish
A Collaborative Approach to Creating, Updating, and Managing Alaska Hydrography Datasets- Branden Bornemann (Kenai Watershed Forum) & Becci Anderson (US Geological Survey)
Upper Cottonwood Stream Mapping - Louisa Branchflower (Palmer Soil & Water Conservation District)
Juvenile coho salmon overwintering habitat in Blodgett Lake, Alaska - Jonathon Gerken (US Fish & Wildlife Service)
Effectiveness of Low-effort, Single-pass Backpack Electrofisher use for Estimation of Juvenile Coho Salmon Abundance in Alaskan Headwater Streams - Kevin Foley (US Fish & Wildlife Service)
3:45 Conclusions
David Wigglesworth (US Fish & Wildlife Service)
4:00 Adjourn